2010-09-08 CC Packet - Laserfiche WebLink

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Centennial Lakes Police Department 2011 Budget Proplasal Included in this document is the complete budget request for 2011 as well as a brief explanation of related proposed expenditures and a rationale for each item, In addition, we are proposing some changes to the format and structure, as well as some recommendations about designated reserve funds. Forfeitures It appears that we have traditionally included forfeiture receipts as an expected revenue source. We believe that this may not be appropriate. Forfeitures receipts are speculative at best, and as a result, are not a reliable revenue source. Secondly, there has been significant discussion concerning forfeitures, and their place in the government revenue projection discussions. It appears that the potential for abuse is high, and indeed, evidence of abuse from the Gang Strike Force has led legislators to change the law, and all forfeitures will undergo increased scrutiny. We believe that it is essential that we clearly separate the enforcement action from the forfeiture action, and avoid any appearance of impropriety. Finally, we know that forfeiture funds cannot be included in the general fund, and removing them from the revenue forecast reduces the chance for inappropriate intermingling, Capital Budget It appears that best practices, both from a budgeting perspective and an accounting perspective, suggest that capital purchases should be scheduled and accounted for in a capital budget rather than in the operating budget. The audit states that capital assets are defined as items costing more than $500 and having a life of greater than one year. For budgeting purposes, we would recommend a value of $ 1000. It is our proposal that we remove all capital purchases from the operating budget and establish a capital budget, We would further suggest that this budget be funded separately by the membership. An option for funding would be to regularly schedule transfers from the reserve fund to the capital budget. The reserve fund currently has a restrictive balance of $140,000 and an unrestricted balance of approximately $400,000. In these particular difficult financial times, it might be worth consideration to finance the purchase of capital assets in this manner. The exact capital budget request for 2011 is included below. We would establish and maintain a rolling ten year capital improvement schedule in which all capital items would be identified and scheduled. Items to be included in this budget would be vehicles, computers, radar units, laptops, office machines, office furniture, defibrillators, speed trailer, etc. The obvious benefit to this strategy is that we can manage and schedule major purchases while maintaining a stable operating budget.